The Dalles City Council adopted an employment opportunities analysis and employment buildable lands inventory. It’s the first update to the analysis since 2007, with an attempt three years ago having gone without adoption because lands held by Google were being considered as available and buildable under Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development standards. That has changed in this report, which shows while there are 204 acres of buildable lands available for industrial growth, consultant Matt Hastie points out there is a deficit of needed sites for the next 20 years in all categories. Mayor Rich Mays pointed out the accuracy of the report is important when the City and Wasco County seek expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary from the Columbia River Gorge Commission.
Category: Uncategorized
February 20-21 Prep Sports Roundup
Swimming
Hood River Valley’s Felipe Mendez finished third in the boys’ 100 breaststroke as the Eagles’ grabbed three placing finishes during Saturday’s Oregon Class 5A Swimming Championships at Tualatin Hills Aquatic Center. Kane Wagner was fifth in the boys’ 100 freestyle, and the HRV boys’ 200 medley relay finished sixth.
The Dalles had three relay teams place in the Class 4A Championships. The Riverhawk boys were third in the 200 freestyle relay and fourth in the 400 freestyle relay, and the girls were fifth in the 200 freestyle relay. Rhett Loughmiller was sixth in both the boys’ 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke, and Kaiya Doty was sixth in the girls’ 100 breaststroke.
Wrestling
Stevenson had three wrestlers earn placing finishes at the Class 1A Mat Classic in the Tacoma Dome. Sophia Mahoney was third in the girls’ 105 division, Regan Minnis was fifth in girls’ 135, and Benjamin Shane was fifth at boys’ 150.
Hood River Valley advanced six to the Oregon Class 5A Championships from the Northwest Oregon Conference boys’ wrestling tournament. Three earned second place finishes: Risor Reierson at 190, Drew Lucas at 132, and Ethan Clough at 120. Third place finishers included Copeland Louis at 126 and Leyton Adams at 138, while Tsadiku Coffman advanced by finishing fourth at 126.
Kianna Dominguez of The Dalles advanced to the Class 4A girls’ state tournament with a third place finish at 100 in the District 3 Tournament in LaGrande.
Boys Basketball
Centennial 60, Hood River Valley 57
The Dalles 70, Gladstone 58
The Dalles 79, Baker 49
Big Sky Conference
Championship: South Wasco 79, Ione-Arlington 57
Third Place: Condon 64, Lyle-Wishram 58
Girls Basketball
Hood River Valley 46, Centennial 19
The Dalles 56, Gladstone 18
Southwest Washington Class 1A District Tournament
King’s Way Christian 34, Columbia 24
Big Sky Conference
Championship: Dufur 33, Trout Lake 32
Third Place: South Wasco 41, Ione-Arlington 36
Alpine Skiing
Rowan McKenna’s first place finished led the Hood River Valley girls’ to a Mt. Hood League slalom win at Mt. Hood Meadows. The Eagles grabbed four of the top five places. Lars Welch finished third and Harrison Kunkler fourth to help HRV to the boys’ team win.
Klickitat County Commissioners Work On STR Regulations
Klickitat County Commissioners are working on developing more sideboards for short-term rental regulations in the County’s unincorporated areas. County Commission Chair Ron Ihrig says he has two goals: get people permitted properly and in compliance, and ensure that when there are conflicts with a neighboring property, there is someone available to address it. Ihrig says in their current draft of proposed STR regulations, there has to be emergency contacts available to respond within 24 hours of the home being rented. He adds they are currently working through the STR issue at the staff and workshop level, and will eventually roll them out to the Planning Commission and the County Commission.
First Phase Of Mariposa Village Progresses Toward Completion
The Mariposa Village housing project off of Rand Road in Hood River is progressing with the expectation of the first phase of occupancy expect in late summer. Hood River Mayor Paul Blackburn has been impressed with pace of work, noting 90 personnel are on site working to complete the first set of units. The second phase of units should be ready early next year. City Manager Abigail Elder noted the project will also include a new public park within it.
Big River Looks For More Funding For Avalon Project
With Big River Community Land Trust having received a $2 million federal allocation for its plans to develop about three acres of property on Avalon Road in Hood River for affordable housing, there are some more funding sources still to be tapped and local fundraising coming as well. Big River Executive Director Alysha Sherburne says they just submitted a grant application to Oregon Housing and Community Services, and the federal funds are a key step toward success there. She says they are beginning to consider local contributions, looking at options for partnerships with local employers and private donors. Sherburne says they hope to submit their land use application to local officials in a couple of weeks. The Avalon Road property is already zoned R-2 residential. The hope is to build around 40 housing units, with an estimated cost of $24 million.
Fishery Manager Set Columbia Spring Chinook Season
Fishery managers have set the Columbia River recreational spring Chinook salmon fishing season. The Columbia River will be open from March 1 to April 8 from the Buoy 10 line upstream to Beacon Rock, plus only the Oregon and Washington banks from Beacon Rock upstream to the Bonneville Dam deadline marker. From April 1 to 26 and on May 2 the Columbia River will be open from the Tower Island power lines approximately six miles below The Dalles Dam upstream to the Washington/Oregon border, plus only the Oregon and Washington banks from Bonneville Dam upstream to the Tower Island power lines. Daily limit for salmon and steelhead is six, with no more than two adults, and only one may be an adult chinook. All wild steelhead and salmon other than hatchery Chinook must be released. Salmon must be at least 12 inches to keep. Shad retention is permitted, with no size minimum or daily limit. The 2026 forecast for upriver spring Chinook is 147,300 fish, which is less than the 154,703 that returned to the Columbia River in 2025, but higher than the 10-year average return of 126,248.
February 19 Prep Basketball Scores
Girls Basketball
Big Sky Conference Semi-Finals
Trout Lake 47, Ione-Arlington 32
Dufur 54, South Wasco 40: Dufur and Trout Lake will meet in the Big Sky championship game Saturday at Kurtz Gym in The Dalles, with South Wasco facing Ione-Arlington for third.
Rogers Named New Hood River Fire Chief
Dallas Deputy Fire Chief Josh Rogers has been named by the City of Hood River as its new fire chief.
Rogers began his fire service career as a firefighter/paramedic in Hapeville, Georgia, and later continued his career with the City of Dallas here in Oregon, where he has served since 2022.
In both departments, he progressed through increasing levels of responsibility, including the ranks of Lieutenant, Captain, Shift Commander, and most recently, serving as the Deputy Fire Chief in the City of Dallas.
He has experience with establishing procedures, mentorship and training, budget reviews, working with healthcare partners, and emergency management.
Rogers received his Bachelors of Science in Fire Administration from Columbia Southern University in Orange Beach, Alabama, holds a Pro Board accredited Fire Officer IV certification, and earned his Executive Fire Officer certificate from the National Fire Academy.
Rogers will be taking over for Leonard Damian, who announced his retirement after more than nine years with the City of Hood River Fire Department.
February 18 Prep Basketball Roundup
Boys Basketball
Big Sky Conference Playoff: Lyle-Wishram 50, Horizon Christian 48: The Cougars will visit Ione-Arlington for a semi-final game on Friday.
Big Sky Conference Playoff: Condon 56, Klickitat-Glenwood 52: Condon moves on to face regular season champion South Wasco in a semi-final on Friday at 6 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Southwest Washington 1A District Tourney Semi-Final
Montesano 38, Columbia 27: The Bruins get a second chance at earning a state tournament berth when they take on King’s Way Christian on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 in Centralia.
Wasco County Briefed On Permitting Process For Solar Project
Wasco County Commissioners held a lengthy discussion Wednesday with an Oregon Department of Energy representative about the permitting process for a proposed 1,000 megawatt solar photovoltaic energy generation facility with a battery storage system on over 13,600 acres of primarily private land zoned for exclusive farm use about ten miles southwest of Maupin. Much of the talk centered on the input the County will have on the project. County Planning Department Director Daniel Daughtry told the Commission what they are looking at as they review the application and prepare comment, particularly conditional use permit review. The project is still in the application process, with the Energy Department’s Kathleen Sloan noting the developing company, DECH, has been asked to provide more information. Public comment and a hearing will be part of the next phase of work.